It will be presented on Friday evening at the Margo Literary Festival by network biologist Ferenc Jordaens Man’s end, nature’s opportunity – our place in the Earth’s ecosystem Its new size.
Although Jordan, a well-known and recognized member of the international scientific elite who has been working abroad for many years, writes in his conclusion that he only looked at “some unfortunately current challenges” from a systems perspective in environmental thinking, a list of problems written down on paper would be more Enough to charge a global criminal trial against humanity.
Through scientific results and the conclusions drawn from them, which are often presented in the volume only as references in a few lines, Jordaens could indeed judge, but instead of demanding a body, in the end he confronts the world only with the truth. Which
“What we have destroyed, we have to correct, or even better, let nature solve it, just let nature work for it.”
photo_camera
The new volume was presented by network researcher Ferenc Jordaens on October 13, 2023
Image: Open Books
After Rousseau
Despite the dramatic title, Jordan does not promote environmental apocalypse, despite the factual material presented in the volume and the scientific apparatus lined up, so that he can be likable in the role of the scientist. But he did not do so in his first book of 2020, which discusses the biological and environmental aspects of the emergence of the new coronavirus, although the work “Satanic prophecies Titled “Predictions of a Scientist and Advice to Mankind,” he tried to break through the threshold of reader motivation.
Instead, Jordan attempts to fill the form cultivated by Enlightenment natural philosophers with twenty-first century content. That is to say, in the qualitative tradition of the scientific article, to explain his findings, while, by his own admission, and in the manner of the “old Rousseau”, he assessed the symptoms, causes and possible consequences of the environmental crisis while walking.
In the volume, which is divided into four chapters, the network research biologist shines on almost every page with the insight into substance and the unique black humor that characterizes his public appearances and university lectures.
“It is not certain that we have made all the mistakes so far, it is just that eight billion people cannot act like a hundred million. What was once good may now become a crazy strategy. Nature should not be controlled, but cherished, “It should be left alone for the most part. A well-functioning ecosystem has a much greater chance of solving our problems than if we wander around looking for a solution ourselves. It is time for us to become adults in the sense that we take responsibility for our actions.”
– For example, he writes in the summary at the end of one of the chapters.
Solution formula
According to Jordan, “Of course we can play dumb, but ostrich politics won’t help. By sticking to our centuries-old traditions, customs and laws, our relationship with nature will only deepen, and green and sustainable solutions that seem beneficial will only perpetuate the problems.” “.
According to him, it is clear that the solution could be degrowth or rewilding, which also promises humanity the opportunity to act on a scale similar to practices that harm the environment and exploit natural resources. And for this, he writes, “we don’t need economic armageddon and mass misery, we don’t need global conflagration,” just a strategy consisting of the wisest, most long-term planned steps in relation to the circumstances, which, while it can’t be perfect, is Certainly better than pressing short-term interests and policies, let’s move forward along the goals.
“More modern environmentalism and nature conservation that focuses on the processes that occur in ecosystems would suggest that we should protect the functioning of systems. It almost doesn’t matter what surrounds us, but let it work. Of course, we know that the ecosystem in general works better, which is formed in a natural way, step by step, gradually refined, and composed of repeatedly tried and tested processes.”
Less is more
However, text unevenness often interferes with reception. Taking unexpected turns and wandering frequently, Jordan examines nature-destroying phenomena of human selfishness such as mass nature walking, sport hunting, drought and desertification, the disruption of global water and coal traffic, and the innocent or deliberate invasion of human-supported flood species. Helps.
After a while, it becomes difficult to follow the train of thought. However, Jordan is known to be an excellent speaker. His nonsense, which makes the scant factual material digestible with unique sparks of humor, usually presents complex environmental relationships in such a way that the audience is not lost in the details. However, the swirling momentum of this volume has swelled into a torrent, based on the twists and turns of the flow of the text, full of self-repetition, as if we were reading the unedited manuscript. By the end of the volume, skepticism had matured into a firm conviction that by applying the principle of “less is more,” it was possible to create a book of essays worthy of the kind of tradition rooted in the Enlightenment.
(Ferenc Jordaens: The end of man, nature’s opportunity – our place in the Earth’s ecosystem; Open Books, 2023)
Related articles about Qubit:
